What's Inside Jogja?

Prambanan is the largest Hindu temples in south-east Asia, located approximately 18 km east of Jogja city. It is characterised by its tall and pointed architecture, typical of Hindu temple architecture and by the 47m high central building inside a large complex of individual temples. The temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It was built around 850 by either Rakai Pikatan, king of the second Hinduism Mataram dynasty, or Dyah Balitung Maha Sambu, during the Sanjaya Dynasty. When Merapi erupted, the temple was abandoned and began to deteriorate. Reconstruction of the compound began in 1918. The main building was completed in around 1953. Much of the original stonework has been stolen and reused at remote construction sites.

The temple was damaged during the earthquake in Java in May 26, 2006. Early photos suggest that although the complex appears to be structurally intact, damage is significant. Large pieces of debris, including carvings, were scattered over the ground. The temple has been closed to the public until damage can be fully assessed. The head of Yogyakarta Archaeological Conservation Agency stated that: "it will take months to identify the precise damage". However, some weeks later in 2006 the site re-opened for visitors. The immediate surroundings of the Hindu temples remain off-limits for safety reasons.

Prambanan also called the temple of Roro Jonggrang (slender virgin), after a Javanese princess, daughter of King Boko. She was forced to marry a man she did not love, Bandung Bondowoso. After long negotiations she eventually agreed to the marriage, under the condition that her prince should build her a temple ornamented with 1000 statues, between the setting and the rising of the sun.

Helped by supernatural beings, the prince was about to succeed. So the princess ordered the women of the village to set a fire in the east of the temple, attempting to make the prince believe that the sun was about to rise. As the cocks began to crow, fooled by the light, the supernatural helpers fled. The prince, furious about the simple trick, changed Roro Jongrang to stone. She became the last and the most beautiful of the thousand statues that now can be found at the north room of the main temple.

Adapted from Wikipedia.com, pics from Indonesia.go.id